Engineer&#39;s valve.



W. H. LIEBER' ENGINEERS VALVE.

APPLICATION FILED 00120, 1911.

1,030,193; Patented June18, 1912.

-EI =-1. F .3- WITNESSEZS- INVENTOR- C BY 1 ATTEJFQNEY WILLIAM H. LIEBER, OF MILWAUKEE, WISCONSIN, ASSIGNOR, T0 ALLIS-CHALMERS COMPANY, OF MILWAUKEE, WISCONSIN, A CORPORATION OF NEW JERSEY.

ENGINEER/S VALVE.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, WILLIAM H. LIEBER, a citizen of the United States, residing at Milwaukee, in the county of Milwaukee and State of Visconsin, have invented a certain new and useful Improvement in Engineers Valves, of which the following is aspecification.

This invention relates to improvements in the construction of engineers valves such as are ordinarily used for controlling air brake systems on railways.

The object of the invention is to provide an engineers valve having means for automatically returning the operating handle to lap position, so that if for any reason the handle is removed while the valve is in either of its extreme positions, it will be automatically returned to lap position, thereby preventing the undesirable escape of air from the brake cylinder or reservoir.

A clear conception of several embodiments of the invention can be had by referring to the drawing accompanying and forming part of this specification, in which like reference characters designate the same or similar parts in the various views.

Figure 1 is a central vertical section through-a rotary engineers valve having means for automatically returning the valve to lap position, embodied therein. Fig. 2 is a transverse horizontal section through the upper chamber of the valve showing the means for automatically returning the valve to lap position/ Fig. 3 is a transverse horizontal section through a valve showing a modified arrangement of means for returning the valve to lap position.

The engineers valve casing,

body 16, valve seat 19, and supporting base 23, these members being secured together by means of bolts 26 to form a solid structure. The valve stem 3 is mounted concentrically within the cap 2 and valve body 16.

The operating handle 1 is provided with a socket which is adapted for coaction with the upper end of the valve stem 3, the handle 1 being removable from the stem in any position. The lower end of the valve stem 3 is provided with a transverse key portion 13 which is adapted to fit into a recess formed on the upper side of the rotary valve 18. As shown, the valve 18 is prosee Figs. 1: and 2, consists essentially of a cap 2, valve Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed October 20, 1911.

Patented June 18, 1912. Serial No. 655,719.

vided with an outwardly project-ing pin 12 which is adapted to fit into a hole formed in the lower side of the key portion 13, thereby permitting insertion of the key portion 18 into the recess formed in the upper portion of the valve 18 in one position only.

The cap 2 incloses a circular chamber which is subdivided by a partition 17 and piston 4 into three chambers 10, 25, 28. The chamber 10 is connected with the atmospherethrough a port 11 formed through the wall of the cap 2. The valve stem 3 is provided with a semi-circular recess 8 on the side of the stem adjacent the chamber 10, this recess 8 being connected with the chamber 10 through a port 9 formed through the partition 17. The piston 1 is secured to the valve stem 3' by means of keys 24 and extends radially therefrom. The outer end of the piston l coacts with a cylindrical surface formed within the cap 2. It may be desirable to provide packing means between the piston 4, cap 2, and valve body 16, such means, however, having been omitted from the drawings. Ports 7, 27, connect the chambers 28, 25, respectively with the interior lower portion of the valve stem' 3 which is bored to receive the upper end or a stationary air inlet pipe 5. The pipe 5 has a port 6 passing through its wall near its upper end. The lower end of the pipe 5 is secured to the valve seat 19 by any suitable securing means, such as screw threads. A helical spring 15, which, as shown, surrounds the stationary pipe 5, coacts at its respective upper and lower ends with surfaces of the stem 3 and valve 18. This spring 15 tends to keep a spherical surface formed on the valve stem 3 in contact with a similarly formed surface formed on the valve body 16, thereby packing the joint between these members.

The base 23 is provided with a brake cylinder connecting port 22, a reservoir connecting port 21 and an exhaust port. The reservoir connecting port 21 normally has air under pressure therein. The upper end of the reservoir port 21 is connected by passage 20 with the interior of the stationary pipe 5, thereby permitting the passage of air under pressure from the port 21 to the interior of the pipe 5.

In the modified form of means for returning the valve stem 10 to lap position, see Fig. 3, the stem is provided with two outwardly projecting pistons 33, 36. The valve cap 31 has a bored portion which is fitted with a half bushing 37 secured to the walls of the cap 31 by means of machine screws. The radius of the outer surfaces of the pistons 33, 36, is equal to the radius of the inner surface of the half bushing 37 The valve stem 10 with its pistons 33, 36, divides the chamber formed within the cap 31 into two chambers 30, 39. The chamber 39 is connected with the atmosphere through a port 38 formed through the half bushing 37 and cap 31. The loose piston 29 has two cylindrical surfaces, the outer of which contacts with the inner bore of the cap 31, and the inner of which coacts with the outer cylindrical surface of the valve stem 40. The valve stem 40 is provided with ports 32, one adjacent either of the pistons 33, 36, which ports connect the chamber 30 with the interior board portion of the stem 40. The interior bored portion of the stem 40 is adapted to receive the stationary air inlet pipe 5 having the port 6 formed therethrough. The ends of the'half bushing 37 have cutaway port-ions 34:, 35.

During normal operation of the valve as disclosed in Figs. 1 and 2, air under pressure is established within the port 21 and the interior of the stationary pipe 5 through the passage 20. As the valve stem 3 is shifted. by means of the operating stem 1 from the normal or lap position in which it is shown in Fig. 2, the air under pressure passes from the interior of the pipe 5 through the port 6 and either of the ports 7, 27, to the corresponding chamber 28, 25. Say for instance the motion of the stem 3 is in a clockwise direction; the chamber 28 in this case is reduced in size while the chamber 25 is correspondingly enlarged. The chamber 25 is connected through the recess 8 through port- 9, chamber 10 and port 11 to atmospheric pressure. The chamber 28 is connected through the ports 6, 7, wit-h the interior of the stationary pipe 5, thereby establishing a high pressure within the chamber 28. As the pressure tending to rotate the valve stem 3 is released, the high pressure established within the chamber 28 will force the piston at in an anti-clockwise direction. As the piston 1 reaches the mid or lap position, as shown in Fig. 2, the communication through the ports 6, 7 between the chamber 28 and interior of the pipe 5, will be cut off, and the communication between the chamber 25 and atmosphere will likewise be cut off. On account of the air under high pressure confined in the chamber 28, as well as the inertia of the parts, a slight over-travel of the piston 41 may occur, such over-travel, however, being of limited extent due to the fact that as the piston 41. goes beyond lap position in an anticlockwise direction, air under pressure will immediately be admitted from the pipe 5 to the chamber 25 through the ports 6, 27. The over-travel of the piston 1 in an anti-clockwise direction will also form a connection between the chamber 28 and atmosphere, thereby releasing a portion of the pressure from the chamber 28. The piston 4 will tend to oscillate for a short period of time until equal pressures are established within each of the chambers 25, 28, when such oscillation will cease, the valve then being in lap posit-ion. It will be noted that with a movement of the operating handle 1 in an anti-clockwise direction, the return of the stem will be analogous to that disclosed for movement in a clockwise direction.

Injthe modification disclosed in Fig. 3, movement of the stem in a clockwise direction will permit the passage of air under pressure from within the stationary pipe 5 through the ports 6, 32, to the portion of the chamber 30 at the right of the piston 29.. The portion of the chamber 30 at the leftof the piston 29 will be connected to atmosphere through the cut-away portion 35,

chamber 39, and port 38. As the stem 40 is released, the pressure acting on the right face of the piston 29 which exposes a considerably larger effective area than the piston 23, causes the piston 29 to move in an anti-clockwise direction, the travel of the piston being checked by the end of the half bushing 37. If the stem40 be moved in an anti-clockwise direction, the air under pressure will be admitted to that portion of the chamber 30 at the left of the piston 29, while at the same time the portion of the chamber 30 to the right of the piston 29 will be connected with atmosphere. This connection of the respective portions of the chamber 30 on opposite sides of the piston 29 to pressure and atmosphere will cause the piston 29 to move toward the right, thereby tending to bring the stem 40 back to normal or lap posit-ion. Since the piston 29 under some conditionsof operation may be required to travel through a considerable arc, it may be desirable to have cushioning means provided to prevent destruction of parts of the mechanism by sudden impact of the 7 piston 29 with the outwardly projecting pistons 33, 36, or the ends of the half bushing 37, such means, however, being omitted from the disclosure.

WVith the devices disclosed in this specifi cation, it will be noted that the valve 18 and the valve stem 3, 10, will always be main tained in lap position so that if. the valve 18 has been opened and the operating stem 1 is removed from the valve, the valve 18 will be automatically closed and the stem brought back to lap position by means of the fluid pressure.

It should be understoodthat it is not desired to be limited to the exact details of construction shown and described, for obvious modifications Will occur to a person skilled in the art.

It is claimed and desired to secure by Letters Patent,

1. In an engineers valve, a common casing, a valve Within said casing, and fluid pressure actuated means for returning said valve to normal from any other position, said fluid pressure actuated means lying entirely Within said common casing and adj acent said valve.

2. In an engineers valve, a common casing, a valve adapted to control ports Within said casing, means for shifting said valve to either side of a mid-position, and fluid pressure actuated means for returning said valve to mid-position, said fluid pressure actuated means lying entirely Within said common casing and adjacent said valve.

3. In an engineers valve, a .common casing, a valve Within said casing, means for operating said valve, and fluid pressure actuated means tending to retain said valve in lap-position, said fluid pressure actuated means lying entirely Within said common casing and adjacent said valve.

4. In an engineers valve, a common casing, a valve for controlling ports in said casing, means for shifting said valve relative to said ports, and fluid pressure actuated means for retaining said valve in lap-position, said fluid pressure actuated means lying entirely Within said common casing and adjacent said valve.

5. In an engineers valve, a common casing, a valve for controlling ports in said casin a stem for operating said valve, and fluid pressure actuated means for retaining said valve in lap-position, said fluid pressure actuated means lying entirely Within said common casing and adjacent said valve.

6. In an engineers valve, a common casing, a valve Within said casing, means for operating said valve, and fluid pressure actuated means for returning said valve to normal from any other position, said fluid pressure actuated means being carried by said operating means and lying entirely Within said common casing.

7. In an engineers valve, a casing, a valve Within said casing, a single piston for returning said valve to normal from any other position, and means for simultaneously admitting pressure to and exhausting pressure from opposite sides of said piston.

8. In an engineers valve, a casing, a valve adapted to control ports Within said casing, a stem for operating said valve, a piston carried by said stem, and means for simultaneously admitting pressure to and exhausting pressure from opposite surfaces of said piston to return. said valve to normal position.

9. In an engineers valve, a casing, a valve adapted to control ports Within said casing, a stem for operating said valve, a piston carried by said stem, and valve means for admitting fluid under pressure to said piston to return said valve to normal from any other position.

In testimony whereof, I hereto atfix my signature in the presence of two Witnesses.

WILLIAM H. LIEBER.

WVitnesses:

. G. F. DEWEIN,

CHAS. L. BYRON.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents,

Washington, D. G. 

